Domestic violence deaths rise as program funds fall

The shooting death of 44-year-old Elizabeth Cann of Norton was the fourth domestic homicide in the Brockton area in 15 days and the 37th domestic violence-related death in the state this year.

By Vicki-Ann Downing

The shooting death of 44-year-old Elizabeth Cann of Norton was the fourth domestic homicide in the Brockton area in 15 days and the 37th domestic violence-related death in the state this year.

Some counselors say the problem is increasing due to budget cuts that limit abuse-prevention and counseling programs. Others blame financial and economic pressures or the ready availability of drugs and guns, a lethal combination.

While each case has its own causes, the deaths are painful to hear about, said Kim Thomas, executive director of New Hope Inc., the Attleboro-based service that provides counseling to victims and abusers in 52 area communities.

Cann's death “is in our local community, which is very, very sad,” said Thomas. “It's always shocking to us when something like this occurs. It's very disheartening. We feel so very badly for the families, and it reminds us of what we do each day to help people.”

Thomas said New Hope assisted more than 1,850 people in obtaining restraining orders and making safety plans for the 12-month period that ended on June 30, 2006. New Hope serves an area that includes southeastern and central Massachusetts.

Police said Cann, 44, a manicurist at the Nu Images Salon in Norton, had obtained a restraining order in 2005 against her longtime boyfriend, Robert McDermott, but it had expired.

Sometime Sunday or early Monday, McDermott shot Cann to death in her bed in her Reservoir Avenue home in Norton, police said. He also shot two of her daughters, Brittany Cann, 12, and Danielle Cann, 15, who remained in critical condition Tuesday at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.

A third daughter, Amanda Cann, 17, a student at Southeastern Regional Technical Vocational High School in Easton, was vacationing in Florida at the time.

Police said McDermott later shot himself on the MBTA commuter rail tracks at the Norwood-Walpole line. His body, which was also struck by a train, was discovered at 5:40 a.m. Monday, almost four hours before the victims were found inside their Norton home.

On Monday night, police recovered McDermott's vehicle, a red Ford Aerostar van, by the train tracks in Norwood, said Greg Miliote, a spokesman for the Bristol Country district attorney. It is being searched as part of the criminal investigation, Miliote said.

Jane Doe Inc., the Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, reported that Cann and McDermott were the 37th and 38th domestic homicide-related fatalities in the state so far this year. There were 34 in 2006 and 19 in 2005, the coalition said.

It said the numbers are increasing largely due to budget cuts, which have resulted in the loss of half the staff of some organizations.

In the past 15 days, six people, including Cann and McDermott, have died in domestic violence incidents in the Brockton area. Others are:

Claudio Montrond, 20, of Brockton, who was hit over the head with a hammer and stabbed at the BAT bus terminal parking garage in Brockton on Aug. 12. His former boyfriend, Laurence Bynum-Harris, 20, of Brockton, was charged.
Rosa Andrade, 39, of Brockton, a mother of three, was shot to death in her home on Aug. 12. Her former boyfriend, Anthony Barbosa, 36, then shot and killed himself.
Carlita Chaney, 28, of South Carolina, was shot to death in a Brockton home on Aug. 16. Her former boyfriend, Amaral Montrond, 29, was charged.

Vicki-Ann Downing of The Enterprise (Brockton, Mass.) can be reached at vdowning@enterprisenews.com.

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